Me and Sir Jimmy Savile
The late lamented Jimmy Savile was an enigma. No-one seemed to know the ‘real’ ‘hello guys and gals’ man of Top of the Pops fame. But I was fortunate to have had a brief insight into his magic.
I met him whilst Editor of the Maghull Times in the late 70s. He was judging the Caged Bird Society show at Ashworth Hospital – where Ian Brady is still caged for his murder of children in Manchester, burying them on nearby Sadleworth Moors.
I was invited into this secure environment to report on the proceedings for the local paper. The department in the hospital catered for what was then non-politically called ‘low grade’ patients, meaning people who had not necessarily done anything criminal, but who could not manage mentally to look after themselves.
Savile was brilliant. He spoke to them with great empathy and respect. He chatted to them about their birds and helped the judging – and they were delighted at his presence. He also tried to chat me up! Even though he was not someone I would have fancied, he had this kind of aura around him, a charismatic presence that you felt drawn to.
He often said that he had slept with many women –though no ‘kiss and tell’ tales have emerged. Whether this was true or not, no-one knows. But from what I experienced I am sure that if he wanted to he could have pulled most women under the sun.
He has many fans both in Leeds where he will be buried and around the country. And from what I experienced I can see why.
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